Tablets at the Helm: Ultimate First Mate or Primary Navigation System?
Published: Thursday, October 8, 2026 9:00 am
By: Nick Heyes
Back in April 2010, I was grounded in Hong Kong for 3 weeks awaiting a return flight home and watched with interest on the hotel’s 24-inch TV, as Apple introduced the iPad to the world. In those days, Hong Kong was a top destination for any new consumer electronics and sure enough, iPads were in the market within hours. For me, it was an immediate purchase – I was hooked on the concept and I’ve spent 16 years accumulating iPads and tablets now filling my bottom drawer!
Fast forward to today and the modern iPad or tablet is a processing powerhouse, and for boaters, this evolution sparks a compelling debate: can a general-purpose tablet device or even smartphone completely replace traditional, dedicated marine chart-plotters? The answer is nuanced.
iPads are of course unique to Apple (iOS), whereas tablets use the Android operating system and are available from a variety of vendors. There’s also PC/Windows based tablets which allow the use of PC navigation software such as TimeZero and Coastal Explorer – great solutions, but most users will opt for some dedicated marine PC hardware so we’ll focus on the dedicated tablet concept.
The primary allure of tablet navigation is undeniably its affordability and flexibility. Traditional helm electronics can easily cost "several boat bucks" plus hundreds more for proprietary charts. In contrast, prominent marine apps like Navionics, Aqua Map, and TZ iBoat offer comprehensive and detailed charting coverage for an annual subscription fee of under $50-$100, while some like OpenCPN are even free with NOAA charts included. This low barrier to entry allows mariners to run multiple applications simultaneously, utilizing different cartography sources to cross-reference tricky passages. Boaters can choose from apps with raster chart appearance, mimicking a paper chart or vector mapping, which allows for better digital zooming and information layers.
A new iPad Pro boasts an ultra-high definition 13 inch, 2752 x 2064 pixel touch screen display, and 10 core GPU which will outgun any dedicated navigation device by a mile in terms of processing power. Coupled with seamless internet connectivity, tablets effortlessly pull down real-time weather overlays, chart updates and crowd-sourced cruising data — tasks that remain trickier on many onboard multi-function displays (MFDs). So a choice of many formats of mapping and easy, intuitive and fast operation plus affordability are a big tick for what we’ll call iPad Nav.
There’s literally hundreds of charting apps to choose from so you can personalize your navigation experience and engage in app flipping. Aqua Map has proved very popular with boaters cruising the Great Loop with its USACE mapping data. Navionics scores highly for simple operation and familiarity with charts used on many traditional MFDs. The new version of TZ iBoat offers the ability to swap between raster, vector and bathy charts. Or, if it’s just data you want, NMEA Remote turns your iPad into a giant, configurable instrument display when connected to your onboard NMEA network – more on that later.
Despite their brilliance, consumer tablets face severe physical limitations when exposed to open water. The most critical vulnerability is reliability under the sun. While new devices now feature bright 1000 cd displays, which are good even in bright light conditions, consumer tablets are engineered to be thin, light, and aesthetically pleasing. Unfortunately, thin aluminum and glass offer poor heat dissipation. On hot, sunny days, even under the shade of a bimini, a tablet running at maximum brightness can quickly overheat where it will dim the screen and even shut down to prevent damage. Some manufacturers like Sailproof and Orca have opted for dedicated marine grade tablet hardware but this is a sort of bespoke solution, like a portable MFD rather than utilizing your regular devices.
Tablets also take in substantial power so make sure you’re equipped with a powerful 12v USB charger and adequate charge cable. It’s worth investing in a good quality, powerful outlet for the helm or chart table. You need to also consider physical vulnerability. Unlike flush or trunnion mounted helm electronics, a tablet requires specialized brackets. In rough, rolling seas, unsecured mobile devices easily become expensive projectiles and touch screens often don’t function well if they’re wet. Sometimes a smartphone running the app and kept in your pocket is a good solution and of course, there’s some good quality waterproof cases available for most devices.
All navigation apps are reliant on GPS for essential real time positioning; that’s a navigation fundamental and you’ll want the most reliable and accurate position fix. The quality of tablet-integrated GPSs varies and many tablets and iPads don’t even integrate a dedicated GPS receiver (these are typically called “wifi only” devices). The best solution is to connect to an existing boat GPS or network. However, dedicated modern marine electronics speak a specific language: NMEA 2000. Tablets do not. To bridge this gap, a wireless NMEA gateway is required to stream not just position data but also instrument and AIS data, which adds more functionality to specific apps. Most importantly, these devices open up an existing boat NMEA 2000 network to the world of 3rd party apps, and effectively give you dual-fuel navigation.
Even with a network gateway, some gaps remain. High-end radar and sonar systems still overwhelmingly require brand-matching, dedicated helm displays to operate. There are exceptions, such as Furuno’s wireless radar which integrates with the TZ app, and many boaters may be content with just GPS and AIS integration. Oftentimes a wireless AIS transponder can act as the source of GPS and AIS data for the tablet. That’s a great redundant navigation solution.
The Verdict: Co-Captains, Not Replacements
Ultimately, navigating a vessel is about risk mitigation and personal comfort. While a handful of minimalist cruisers successfully navigate using only mobile devices, the consensus among marine tech experts heavily favors a hybrid approach. Hybrid iPad/MFD navigation may allow you to purchase a small dedicated MFD for reliability and use a tablet as a 2nd station. Small screen MFDs are relatively affordable. And if you’re a boater with just a dedicated MFD, splash out and experiment with a tablet, apps and a NMEA gateway.
The iPad/tablet is not quite ready to completely usurp the dedicated chart plotter as the sole primary navigator on a cruising boat. Instead, it serves as the ultimate supplemental device. By pairing a rugged, permanently mounted, network-integrated MFD with a highly flexible, data-rich tablet, mariners achieve the best of both worlds: unyielding reliability when the weather turns foul, and intuitive, cutting-edge software right at their fingertips.
Bio: Nick Heyes is currently CEO of Digital Yacht and has been involved in the marine electronics industry since leaving university 40 years ago. He writes on behalf of the NMEA/IMEA Industry association, which governs maritime electronic system standards, device certification, and offers training for installers to help promote safer boating.
Rain tablet on boat photo by Yiran Ding on Unsplash.
Other tablet and TABLE photos provided by Digital Yacht Co.
tags: Boat Technology, boating, Boats, Industry News, iPad, marine, Navigation, tablet, Technology
